Anorexia is heritable

A genetic predisposition accounts for more than half the risk of developing anorexia nervosa, according to a Swedish study. Researchers found that narrowly defined anorexia nervosa, according to DSM-IV criteria, was 56 per cent heritable. Rates of the condition in 13,079 twins in 2002 were compared against risk factors measured in 1973. BMI, gastric problems and perceived life stress were not predictive of later anorexia nervosa, but neuroticism was (Arch Gen Psychiatry 2006; 63: 305-12).

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